But I am diverted from profecuting Stentor's reforma-. tion, by an account, that the two faithful Lovers, Lifander and Coriana, are dead; for no longer ago than the first day of the last month they fwore eternal fidelity to each other, and to love until death. Ever fince that time, Lifander has been twice a day at the Chocolatehoufe, vifits in every circle, is miffing four hours in four and twenty, and will give no account of himself. These are undoubted proofs of the departure of a Lover; and confequently Coriana is alfo dead as a Miftrefs. I have written to Stentor to give this couple three calls at the church-door, which they must hear if they are living within the Bills of Mortality; and if they do not anfwer at that time, they are from that moment added to the number of my Defunct. N° 55. Tuesday, W Paulo majora canamns. Virg. Ecl. 1v. ver. 1, White's Chocolate-houfe, August 15. HILE others are bufied in relations which concern the interests of Princes, the peace of Nations, and the revolutions of Empire; I think, though thefe are very great fubjects, my theme of difcourfe is fometimes to be of matters of a yet higher confideration. The flow fteps of Providence and Nature, and ftrange events which are brought about in an inftant, are what, as they come within our view and obfervation, fhall be given to the Public. Such things are not accompanied with fhow and noife, and therefore feldom draw the eyes of the unattentive part of mankind; but are very proper at once to exercife our humanity, please our imaginations, and improve our judgments. It may not therefore therefore be unufeful to relate many circumstances, which were obfervable upon a late cure done upon a young Gentleman who was born blind, and on the twenty-ninth of June laft received his fight at the age of twenty years, by the operation of an Oculift. This happened ne farther off than Newington, and the work was prepared for in the following manner. The Operator, Mr. Grant, having obferved the Eyes of his Patient, and convinced his friends and relations, among others the Reverend Mr. Cafwell, Minifter of the place, that it was highly probable he should remove the obstacle which prevented the ufe of his fight; all his acquaintance, who had any regard for the young man, or curiofity to be prefent when one of full age and understanding received a new fenfe, aflembled themfelves on this occafion. Mr. Cafwell, being a Gentleman particularly curious, defired the whole company, in cafe the blindness should be cured, to keep fecret; and let the Patient make his own obfervations, without the direction of any thing he had received by his other fenfes, or the advantage of difcovering his friends by their voices. Among feveral others, the mother, brethren, fifters, and a young Gentlewoman for whom he had a paffion, were prefent. The work was performed with great skill and dexterity. When the Patient first received the dawn of light, there appeared fuch an ecftasy in his action, that he seemed ready to fwoon away in the furprize of joy and wonder. The Surgeon ftood before him with his inftruments in his hands. The young man obferved him from head to foot; after which he furveyed himself as carefully, and feemed to compare him to him. felf; and obferving both their hands, feemed to think they were exactly alike, except the inftruments, which he took for parts of his hands. When he had continued in this amazement fome time, his mother could not longer bear the agitations of fo many paffions as thronged upon her; but fell upon his neck, crying out, My fon! my fon! The youth knew her voice, and could fpeak no more than, Oh me! are you my mother? and fainted. The whole room, you will eafily conceive, were very affectionately employed in recovering him; but above all, the young Gentlewoman who loved him, and whom he As he loved, fhrieked in the loudest manner. That voice feemed to have a fudden effect upon him as he recovered, and he fhewed a double curiofity in obferving her as the fpoke and called to him; until at last he broke out, What has been done to me? whither am I carried? Is all this about me, the thing I have heard fo often of? is this the light is this feeing? Were you always thus happy, when you faid, you were glad to fee each other? Where is Tom, who used to lead me? But I could now, methinks, go any where without him. He offered to move, but feemed afraid of every thing around him. When they faw his difficulty, they told him, until he became better acquainted with his new being, he must let the fervant still lead him. The boy was called for, and prefented to him. Mr. Cafwell asked him, what fort of thing he took Tom to be before he had feen him. He answered, he believed there was not fo much of him as of himself; but he fancied him the fame fort of creature. The noise of this fudden change made all the neighbourhood throng to the place where he was. he faw the croud thickening, he defired Mr. Cafwell, to tell him how many there were in all to be feen. The Gentleman, fmiling, anfwered him, that it would be very proper for him to return to his late condition, and fuffer his Eyes to be covered, until they had received ftrength; for he might remember well enough, that by degrees he had from little and little come to the ftrength he had at present in his ability of walking and moving; and that it was the fame thing with his Eyes, which, he faid, would lofe the power of continuing to him that wonderful transport he was now in, except he would be contented to lay afide the ufe of them, until they were ftrong enough to bear the light without fo much feeling as, he knew, he underwent at prefent. With much reluctance he was prevailed upon to have his Eyes bound; in which condition they kept him in a dark room, until it was proper to let the organ receive its objects without farther precaution. During the time of this darkness, he bewailed himfelf in the moft diftreffed manner; and accufed all his friends, complaining that fome incanta. tion had been wrought upon him, and fome ftrarge magic ufed to deceive him into an opinion, that he had VOL. II. C enjoyed enjoyed what they called Sight. He added, that the impreffions then let in upon his Soul would certainly dif tract him, if he were not fo at that prefent. At another time, he would ftrive to name the perfons he had seen among the croud after he was couched, and would pretend to fpeak, in perplexed terms of his own making, of what he in that fhort time obferved. But on the fixth inflant it was thought fit to unbind his head, and the young woman whom he loved was inftructed to open his Eyes accordingly; as well to endear herfelf to him by fuch a circumftance, as to moderate his ecftafies by the perfuafion of a voice, which had fo much power over him as hers ever had. When this beloved young woman began to take off the binding of his Eyes, fhe talked to him as follows: 86 "Mr. William, I am now taking the binding off, though, when I confider what I am doing, I tremble with the apprehenfion, that (though I have from my very childhood loved you, dark as you were, and though you had conceived fo ftrong a love for me, yet) you will find there is fuch a thing as Beauty, which may enfnare you into a thoufand paffions of "which you are now innocent, and take you from me But, before I put myself to that hazard, "tell me in what manner that love, you always pro"feffed to me, entered into your heart; for its ufual admiffion is at the Eyes." "for ever. 66 The young man anfwered, "Dear Lidia, If I am "to lofe by fight the foft pantings which I have always "felt when I heard your voice; if I am no more to diftinguish the ftep of her I love when the approaches me, but to change that fweet and frequent pleasure for fuch an amazement as I knew the little time I lately Saw; or if I am to have any thing befides, "which may take from me the fenfe I have of what appeared moft pleafing to me at that time, which apparition it feems was you; pull out thefe Eyes, before "they lead me to be ungrateful to you, or undo myself. I wifhed for them but to fee you; puli them out, if they are to make me forget you." Lidia was extremely fatisfied with thefe affurances and pleafed herself with playing with his perplexities. In all his talk to her, he fhewed but very faint ideas any, thing which had not been received at the ears; an clofed his proteftation to her, by faying, that if he were to fee Valentia and Barcelona, whom he fuppofed the moft efleemed of all women, by the quarrel there was about them, he would never like any but Lidia. St. James's Coffee-house, August 15. We have repeated advices of the entire defeat of the Swedish army near Pultowa on the twenty-feventh of June, O. S. and Letters from Berlin give the following account of the remains of the Swedish army fince the battle Prince Menzikoff, being ordered to purfue the victory, came up with the Swedish army, which was left. to the command of General Lewenhaupt, on the thirtieth of June, O. S. on the banks of the Borifthenes; whereupon he fent General Lewenhaupt a fummons to fubmit himself to his prefent fortune: Lewenhaupt immediately difpatched three General officers to that Prince, to treat about a capitulation; but the Swedes, though they confifted of fifteen thousand men, were in fo great want of provifion and ammunition, that they were obliged to furrender themfelves at difcretion. His Czarish Majefty dispatched an exprefs to General Goltz with an account of these particulars, and alfo with inftructions to send out detachments of his cavalry to prevent the King of Sweden's joining his army in Poland. That Prince made his escape with a fmall party by fwimming over the Borifthenes; and it was thought, he defigned to retire into Poland by the way of Volbinia. Advices from Bern of the eleventh inftant fay, that the general Diet of the Helvetic body held at Baden concluded on the fixth; but the Deputies of the Six Cantons, who are deputed to determine the affair of Tockenburg, continue their application to that bufinefs, notwithilanding fome new difficulties ftarted by the Abbot of Saint Gall. Letters from Geneva of the ninth fay, that the Duke of Say's cam valry had joined Count Thaun, as had alfo two imperial regiments of Huffars; and that his Royal Highness's Ca army |